Bulgaria’s Gerb party on January 15 nominated a government to be headed by Rossen Zhelyazkov and backed by three other parties – the pro-Russian Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP), populist There Are Such People (ITN) and the parliamentary group of Democracy, Rights and Freedoms (DPS-DPS) led by Ahmed Dogan.

The new coalition and Zhelyazkov’s nomination for government were not well accepted by many politicians and experts. Former BSP leader Kornelia Ninova described it as a ‘Frankenstein’s monster’.

Two priorities 

In the new cabinet, Gerb will have 11 ministers, while the BSP will have one deputy prime minister and four ministers. ITN is getting one deputy prime ministerial seat and three ministries.

The nominations presented by Zhelyazkov to President Rumen Radev on January 15 include many politicians who already have been ministers in one of Gerb’s three previous governments, or in the caretaker cabinets that have been ruling the country for most of the time since April 2021.

Zhelyazkov said that his government would have two main priorities: the adoption of a budget for 2025 and entry into the eurozone. None of the previously announced reforms to the judiciary or any other sector were mentioned.

Zhelyazkov was parliament speaker during the previous regular government, led by ex-prime minister Nikolai Denkov. He was Gerb’s candidate for premier in the previous parliament but has failed to get enough support. Back then, BSP and ITN, as well as some Movement for Rights and Freedoms (DPS) MPs, who are currently members of DPS-DPS, voted against the proposed government.

Zhelyazkov also served as transport minister in Gerb leader Boyko Borissov’s second government.

Lengthy negotiations 

The coalition was agreed after month-and-half-long negotiations, which initially began between Gerb and the reformist pro-Western Democratic Bulgaria (DB), part of the Change Continues-Democratic Bulgaria (CC-DB) coalition.

Subsequently, the BSP and ITN were added. Gerb then unexpectedly said it was giving up talks with DB and had dropped its plans to form a government. 

However, a day later, Borissov said his party would continue talks with the BSP and ITN. On the evening of January 14, DPS-DPS agreed to back a Zhelyazkov-led government, without having its own ministers or being an equal member of the ruling coalition. 

On January 15, DPS-DPS signed an annex to the agreement between the other three parties, pledging to back the planned government and secure a majority in parliament.

Frankenstein’s monster

There is intense speculation in Bulgaria about the potential influence of Delyan Peevski, the Magnitsky-sanctioned leader of DPS’s other faaction, DPS – New Beginning, over the new cabinet. 

Many politicians, analysts and experts suggest that the government is strongly influenced by Peevski, although he is not directly involved in the ruling coalition or the government.

“This Frankenstein of Borissov with crutches from the BSP and ITN, depending on the golden finger of Dogan is a cabinet lined up by Peevski,” Ninova wrote on Facebook.

DB suggested in its first official comment that the talks with them had been ended so that Gerb could scrap all measures limiting Peevski’s influence.

“The composition of the draft cabinet is won-der-ful. We have a professional hand-kisser ([nominee for foreign minister] Mr. Georg [Georgiev]) and a touching number of titularies who know that if they do not kiss what-must-be-kissed, the prosecution comes for them (starting with the prime minister and ending with [nominee for tourism minister Miroslav] Borsos). Everyone will listen. And they will kiss whatever is given to them. And whoever gave it to them,” prominent political journalist Polina Paunova wrote on Facebook.